More Carney: I’m sure people in the White House were aware tea-party groups were complaining about the IRS

posted at 7:21 pm on May 14, 2013 by Allahpundit

And no one there picked up the phone to find out from the IRS if it was true, even though Obama himself called the agency’s behavior “outrageous” yesterday, huh? The money line in the clip comes at 46 seconds in, when Carney talks about maintaining “distance” between the IRS and the White House so that the agency isn’t “politicized.” But … according to tea partiers, it had already been politicized; the White House could have intervened to end the politicization. Why didn’t it? Is this part of the IRS’s “permission structure”?

Meanwhile, be on the lookout for a fun new minimizing angle on all this from Obama’s defenders:

The worst thing about Obama scandals per MSNBC:RT @nowwithalex: The tin foil hatted conspiracy theorists now have something to munch on.

Jon Stewart made a similar point last night. Harassing tea partiers is bad, but perhaps the more grievous wrong committed by the IRS is how it’s hurt liberals by making it harder to defend activist government against those darned wingnuts. (Never mind that the cause of activist government has persisted throughout decades of the IRS hassling people from different sides of the political spectrum.) The same goes for Pigford, I guess: Alleged tinfoil-hat-wearers like Andrew Breitbart howled about that for years, to the collective yawns of the media, until the NYT announced a few weeks ago that Breitbart had been right all along. Presumably the real tragedy in Pigford isn’t the corruption, the waste of taxpayer money, or the media’s persistent incuriosity, it’s the fact that it put liberals on the defensive. Who knows? If this vindication of nuttery continues, people might start leaping to the conclusion that a pile of government wrongs means there’s something wrong with government. Or, even worse, that a smaller government might be less susceptible to corruption.

Exit question: Who wrote the following defense of pursuing scandals to wherever they might lead in the name of limiting executive power? “In Washington, scandals metastasize, growing and changing until we can’t remember what they were about in the beginning. A bungled burglary became a cancer on the presidency, forcing Richard Nixon to resign in disgrace. A money-losing Arkansas real estate deal led to Monica, a blue dress and Bill Clinton’s impeachment. Already, the furor over the dismissal of eight U.S. Attorneys has shifted focus from the crass but essentially routine exercise of political patronage to the essential project of George W. Bush’s presidency: its deliberate and aggressive efforts to expand and protect Executive power.” Answer here.

In Washington, scandals metastasize, growing and changing until we can’t remember what they were about in the beginning. A bungled burglary became a cancer on the presidency, forcing Richard Nixon to resign in disgrace. A money-losing Arkansas real estate deal led to Monica, a blue dress and Bill Clinton’s impeachment. Already, the furor over the dismissal of eight U.S. Attorneys has shifted focus from the crass but essentially routine exercise of political patronage to the essential project of George W. Bush’s presidency: its deliberate and aggressive efforts to expand and protect Executive power.

More Carney: I’m sure people in the White House were aware tea-party groups were complaining about the IRS

Which brings up[ the question—Why does this scandal explode NOW? The timing is suspicious. I mean, people in the press have known this for 2 years. So why now? Why the apology from the IRS last Friday?

But let’s look at what this scandal does. It dilutes the Benghazi murders and takes Hillary off the front page. So it is very advantageous for Hillary, who has no finger print in the IRS scandal, to have this happen now.

Exit question—Do you think Bill and Hill have enough juice in Washington to get the IRS scandal to break now?

Harassing tea partiers is bad, but perhaps the more grievous wrong committed by the IRS is how it’s hurt liberals by making it harder to defend activist government against those darned wingnuts.

So is that the new math?

The Tea Party forms to protest the expansive growth of government and the potential threat of abuse + an expansive government that begins to abuse that group = a darn shame that progressives will have a tougher time advocating an expansive government.

Twitchy has the first liberal nutjob in Hollywood singing the praises of fascism.. Bette Midler,.. has been sure, like Cher, both singing the halleluiahs of political persecution..

Weren’t these kinds of 60’s radicals the ones who screeched the loudest about our fascist federal gubmint back when they were on the outside, young and just as clueless?

Can’t ANYONE who knows them tap them on the shoulder and point out what a complete tool they’ve become?.. Unless it was never the tactics of fascism they hated, just the party which could potentially use them. That I suspect is the truth.. hippy’s didn’t hate a police state they constantly claimed we had,.. they just hated not being in on wearing the jackboots.

Thank you yes.. that was my question.. sometimes I’m too literal minded, and miss sarcasm on someones part, so rather than run off halfcocked and say something stupid, I like to confirm a quote when possible..

even though Obama himself called the agency’s behavior
“outrageous” yesterday.

Yeah, well he also said that the IRS was capable of investigating itself. We tried that with State and Benghazi and the piece of crap a professional diplomat and a retired four-star admiral was nothing but CYA for the rat-eared coward and Hillary Clinton (not that her ears are all that attractive either).

No thanks, Mr. President. The Oversight Committee wants to talk to a few of these criminals. The WaPo has an article about Lois Lerner today and how she constantly lectured that if you couldn’t explain it to a Congressional hearing with cameras rolling then you better think twice. I say we give her the chance to practice what she preached. And perhaps she can also explain why pro-Obama non-profits got personal data on less pro-Obama non-profits including financials, officers, and everything else they had to provide in a 55-question interrogation.

Already, the furor over the dismissal of eight U.S. Attorneys has shifted focus from the crass but essentially routine exercise of political patronage to the essential project of George W. Bush’s presidency

Which brings up[ the question—Why does this scandal explode NOW? The timing is suspicious. I mean, people in the press have known this for 2 years.

The liberal media faced an intersection last week—Obama or Shillary. They realize Obama has effectively created himself a lame duck situation so pointless to continue to support him as he coasts in his 2nd term. So, exposing Obama allows them to restore a resemblance of credibility as they being their push for Lady What Difference Does It Make.

That suggests there is something buried they are praying doesn’t come out.. I will NOT speculate as to what, but it has to be pretty awful if using the IRS as their own personal goon squad isn’t worse to them in terms of damage.

On the surface.. the IRS abuses would appear far worse legally..

I mean incompetence may be a horrible thing when it gets folks killed, while immoral, it’s not illegal..

what could he have done to be this worried about?.. where actual law breaking seems less scarey?

You must really think I give a f@$k. As long as Obama is doing all he can to investigate and rid America off these anti USA tea party groups, I am fine.

HotAirLib on May 14, 2013 at 7:23 PM

Your legs hurt from all that goose stepping scumbag?

1st.. They violated their civil rights, the equal protections clause..

2nd. spoon fed personal tax information to a left wing hack group to use in a smear campaign as they distorted them into half truths.. It’s a felony to disclose private citizens personal information, or didn’t you know that.. moron..

3rd.. the only abnti-USA groups out there are the soros funded buttboys who colluded with a federal agency to destroy private citizens, because they don’t kiss the Obama ring..

only a profoundly clueles halfwit could go from “dissent is the truest form of patriotism” in 04 to hang the seditious scum in 13.. are YOU really that stupid?

We hate Soros for the neonazi scumbag he is, and the tentacles of his money funding dozens of hard left “interest” groups (read.. voter fraud)..

but nobody on our side ever said they should be persecuted by the government.. because we THINK they’re dirty..

you did..

you own that in all you fascist glory..

the Bill of rights for all… unless YOU personally hate them and their politics..

That’s as anti-American, as un-American as it gets.. right up there with helping herd Jews into cattle cars.. and the saddest part, you will never see just how despicable that comment was, because to a left wing zealot, kill em all is a form of greeting.

The worst thing about Obama scandals per MSNBC:RT @nowwithalex: The tin foil hatted conspiracy theorists now have something to munch on.

MSNBC seems to forget that the tin foil lunatic was Barky’s ally in the attempted coup of Honduras – Zelaya. Barky did everything he could to help Zelaya pull off that coup, including lying about the government and judiciaries defenses of their republic against Barky and Chavez’s butt boy, tin foil afficianado, Zelaya. Barky and his criminal junta even went so far as to refuse visas to Honduras’ legitimate representatives to the pathetic UN and, instead, brought in Zelaya and a bunch of others representing the leftist junta in exile (including Honduras’ version of Bill Ayers, a domestic Honduran terrorist from the ’80s) to allegedly represent Honduras.

Yeah … who remembers those days .. so many impeachable acts ago …

Anyway, Zelaya was the one cornering the market on tin foil in order to ward off the mossad’s mind control rays. No joke. MSNBC has long forgotten about this.

I fear that the MSM will suddenly wake up like Sleeping Beauty and go right back to protecting O’s you know what again… I fear this won’t last even one week. I can’t believe any of this will come to anything.

As I wrote at the time, what happened in Honduras was a peek at what we would be facing eventually. And Barky’s defense of Zelaya was the same stupid defense he’s going to try to make for himself. No one bought it then (not even the brain dead left). I hope that we have half the intestinal fortitude that Honduras had in dealing with Zelaya’s attempted coup (though we have failed that for 4+ years, thus far).

Obama puts out statement just now calling IRS action “intolerable and inexcusable”

“I have now had the opportunity to review the Treasury Department watchdog’s report on its investigation of IRS personnel who improperly targeted conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status. And the report’s findings are intolerable and inexcusable. The federal government must conduct itself in a way that’s worthy of the public’s trust, and that’s especially true for the IRS. The IRS must apply the law in a fair and impartial way, and its employees must act with utmost integrity. This report shows that some of its employees failed that test.

I’ve directed Secretary Lew to hold those responsible for these failures accountable, and to make sure that each of the Inspector General’s recommendations are implemented quickly, so that such conduct never happens again. But regardless of how this conduct was allowed to take place, the bottom line is, it was wrong. Public service is a solemn privilege. I expect everyone who serves in the federal government to hold themselves to the highest ethical and moral standards. So do the American people. And as President, I intend to make sure our public servants live up to those standards every day.

Can these people not see past the end of their nose? Do they not realize that there will be a president #45. If things continue on this path, there will be a very good possibility that the person will have an R by their name.

I fear that the MSM will suddenly wake up like Sleeping Beauty and go right back to protecting O’s you know what again… I fear this won’t last even one week. I can’t believe any of this will come to anything.

djl130 on May 14, 2013 at 8:45 PM

I disagree. I think it awakened the moribund Tea Party Movement. I think it put the media on notice that they are not immune to royal decrees even though they will soon enough be making amends with the administration. And I think Hillary Clinton has serious issues if she dares challenge Mooch for the nomination in 2016.

Here’s another angle to the IRS attack that I haven’t seen mentioned anywhere yet. The long game, if you will. The net result being that the nascent TPs were “aborted”. How many did we see start out like gangbusters with many donating in expectation of a writeoff? If those tax-deductible receipts never materialized, only the hardcore would continue to donate while those on a budget felt burned as if the group they joined was somehow a sham. That’s a question to be explored; the membership size before and after the IRS snuffed the fervor of supporters. Certainly the groups need to focus on this now while congress is awake to it. We have to get the grassroots back in the game for 2014 and 2016 to really punish the monks with GOTV.

OK…. It is now OK to have rogue government employees to run a muck and illegally target groups of people entirely based on key words democrat operatives have deemed associated to conservative political enemies!

You want to talk about abuse of power! Who on God’s green earth would be OK with this kind of invasive illegal targeting?

Does anyone have access to the data that keeps track of government employees and their party affiliation? I think THAT is another BIG, BIG problem….. If in fact unemployment in the Government sector is at 3% and the rest of the countries private sector unemployment is over 10% (the numbers published are lies), and IF we have this kind of BIASED political abuse being used in multiple government agencies….. Just think about how easy it has been for them destroy legitimate opposition.